New York home sales rise 9 percent for new November sales record; CNY numbers up

ALBANY, N.Y. — New York realtors completed the sale of more than 10,000 previously owned homes in November, an increase of nearly 9 percent from November 2015.

The 10,547 closed sales in November was a “new record” for the month, the New York State Association of Realtors (NYSAR) said in releasing its monthly housing-market report on Dec. 22.

The November closed-sales figure pushed the Empire State total to 118,730, surpassing the 2015 annual mark of 116,671, NYSAR said in its news release.

“It continues to be an exceptional year for the Empire State’s housing market as buyers remained very active deep into the fall, a time when the market typically begins to slow,” Duncan MacKenzie, CEO of NYSAR, said in the release. “With mortgage-rate upticks likely on the horizon, we believe that consumers were highly motivated to complete their purchase to take advantage of still low rates.”

All indications point to 2016 setting a new “high-water mark” for annual home sales in New York, MacKenzie said.

“Looking ahead to 2017, continued strength in the overall economy gives a reason for optimism, but we do have concerns that sales growth could be tempered because of increasing mortgage rates and low for-sale housing inventory,” he added.

Sales data
The year-to-date (Jan. 1 to Nov. 30) sales total of 118,730 was about 10 percent above the same period last year. Closed sales in November totaled 10,547, a nearly 9 percent increase compared to a year ago, NYSAR said.

The year-to-date statewide median sales price was $235,000, up 2.2 percent from the same period in 2015.

The November statewide median sales price of $240,000 was up 6.7 percent compared to the November 2015 median of $225,000.

Pending sales in November increased 7.1 percent to reach 9,635 compared to the November 2015 total of 8,993.

The months’ supply of inventory dropped about 28 percent at the end of November to 6 months’ supply. It stood at 8.4 months at the end of November 2015.

A 6 month to 6.5 month supply is considered to be a balanced market. Inventory stood at 68,031, a decrease of nearly 21 percent compared to November 2015.

Central New York data
Realtors in Broome County sold 123 existing homes in November, up nearly 1 percent from 122 a year ago, according to the NYSAR report. The median sales price fell more than 15 percent to nearly $96,000 from more than $113,000 a year ago.

In Jefferson County, realtors closed on 96 homes in November, up more than 41 percent from 68 a year ago, and the median sales price fell nearly 15 percent to $135,000 from more than $158,000 in November 2015, according to the NYSAR data.

NYSAR also reports that realtors sold 193 homes in Oneida County last month, up nearly 13 percent from 171 in November 2015. The median sales price fell more than 1 percent to more than $112,000 from $114,000 a year ago.

Sales of previously owned homes rose more than 3 percent to 373 in Onondaga County in November from 361 a year earlier, and the median sales price climbed more than 3 percent to top $134,000, compared to $130,000 a year ago, according to the NYSAR report.

All home-sales data is compiled from multiple-listing services in New York state and it includes townhomes and condominiums in addition to existing single-family homes, per NYSAR.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com